The benefits of the Mediterranean diet
We all know that the Mediterranean diet is the healthiest diet and, therefore, highly advisable. But some people identify their diet as "Mediterranean" simply because they live in this geographical area. This is not quite correct, in fact we can affirm that not all the inhabitants of our country practice this famous and beneficial way of feeding.
The Mediterranean diet, as Professor Mataix affirms, is that composed of foods commonly consumed in the Mediterranean area. It has a certain ancestral character and, therefore, is easier for Mediterranean individuals to follow than for other peoples, since it is inherent to their way of life.
We must point out that the Mediterranean area It constitutes a space of cultural miscegenation, in which foods from different cultures have been introduced. So we have that tomato, corn, potato or pepper, typical ingredients of our salads and much of our stews, are of American origin.
Our famous paella, has as a fundamental ingredient the rice, of Asian origin as well as the peach and the orange. We can not forget that spinach, artichokes and aubergines were introduced into our environment by the Arab peoples. We could continue with an endless list of foods that have been arriving to our environment and that our culture has been incorporating. In fact,the only foods that would be typical of the Mediterranean area since ancient times are the wheat, the vine and the olive tree.
Why is the Mediterranean diet so beneficial?
But what would be the most important characteristics of the Mediterranean diet? We could summarize them in four points:
1. High consumption of fruits and vegetables
2. High consumption of fish
3. Use of olive oil as the main fat
4. Utilization of the culinary process of frying in an oil bath.
The mechanism by which the Mediterranean diet is beneficial to prevent cardiovascular diseases is almost totally defined by the combined consumption of the mentioned food groups.
- Fruits and vegetables They provide nutrients and also have antioxidant action, as a result of their content in vitamins A, C and E. We can not forget that they are also rich in fiber because of celluloses and pectins.
- Olive oil provides monounsaturated fats such as oleic acid. Fish, however, provides polyunsaturated fats such as n-3 fatty acids.
In a simple way the way of acting of each type of nutrient could be explained in the following way: fiber, present in fruits and vegetables, acts by lowering blood cholesterol. Monounsaturated fats also act by lowering cholesterol and n-3 polyunsaturated fats, decreasing another risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, which is thrombogenesis.
Mediterranean diet: substitution by other foods
Unfortunately, when we reviewed the last national health survey, we observed that the dietary habits of the Spanish population are distancing themselves from the model defined for the Mediterranean diet. Well, what is deduced from the data, is that the benefits of our diet may not be used by the following generations. It is not easy to specify the cause that is leading us to a progressive distancing from the Mediterranean diet.
1. Substitution of the fruit. Although it is true that thanks to intensive crops in greenhouses we can have fresh fruit throughout the year, it is also true that its consumption is increasingly scarce among children and young people. This decrease is due to the substitution of fruit, which was traditionally the dessert of the main meals, by dairy products and industrial pastries, both easier to make our children eat, but also less beneficial than fruit. Practically the same could be said for the consumption of the other three pillars of the Mediterranean diet: vegetables, fish and olive oil.
2. Gastronomic colonization. It is the one we are suffering from the Anglo-Saxon countries. Whoever has small children will know what I am talking about. Children do not want freshly squeezed orange juice, and yet they happily take the juices advertised on television and only contain 5% fruit. The same could be said for pizzas, hamburgers, kebabs, etc.
From the dietetic-sanitary point of view, it is important consolidate the Mediterranean food model, it is necessary to disseminate its concept and content at the earliest ages. That is, it is about teaching the child to eat well, to know the food in its place of origin: the garden, the farm, the sea. The task is difficult and corresponds to parents and teachers, against we have a constant advertising bombardment and the tendency to eat as comfortable as possible.
As in any educational process the best method is the example, if we try to make "healthy eating" in our house we will be making an important investment in the health of our children. No major changes will be necessary, just some simple guidelines to follow and we will develop in successive articles: take care of breakfast as one of the main meals of the day, try to take a fruit in the morning and afternoon, return to the weekly vegetables, try not to abuse precooked meals, use olive oil as culinary fat ... in short, recover the kitchen of our grandmothers.
Pedro J. Toranzos Carazo. Pharmacist and Nutritionist
